Minneapolis, MN
August 23, 2022
June 26, 2022
June 29, 2022
16
10.18260/1-2--40602
https://peer.asee.org/40602
254
Dr. Richard Hill is a Professor and Assistant Dean in the College of Engineering & Science at University of Detroit Mercy. Dr. Hill received a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California in 1998, and an M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 2000. He joined the faculty of Detroit Mercy in 2008 after receiving a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering and an M.S. degree in Applied Mathematics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His research interests lie in the areas of vehicle control, the formal synthesis of discrete control logic, and modular and hierarchical control. Dr. Hill also has a strong interest in diversifying the STEM pipeline and leads the innovating Detroit’s Robotics Agile Workforce (iDRAW) program in partnership with underserved Detroit-area high schools.
This paper describes the development of an engineering pathways program for underserved high school students. The innovating Detroit’s Robotics Agile Workforce (iDRAW) program is administered by the University of Detroit Mercy and is in its third year of working with two local high schools. The students are predominantly low-income and from populations historically underrepresented in STEM. The goal of the program is to increase interest in STEM-related careers while reducing barriers to entering such fields. The program aims to provide on-ramps to a range of careers across disciplines (mechanical, electrical, software, etc.) requiring different levels of educational attainment (4-yr university, 2-yr college, apprenticeships, etc.). In the first two years of the program, there were 97 qualifying graduates with nearly half going on to study a STEM discipline in college and over a quarter choosing to major in engineering or computer science at a 4-year university. Of the qualifying graduates, 55% were Latinx, 5% were Black, and 37% were Arab American. Preliminary data shows the program correlated with a modest increase in STEM career interest and students perceived the program to help them prepare for their future, though the program might not have had a positive impact on student self-efficacy in STEM.
Hill, R., & Bennett Garraway, J. (2022, August), Development of a High School Engineering Pathways Program (Work in Progress, Diversity) Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--40602
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